It’s a bit like taking a tile to the head. We don’t immediately understand what’s happening and it hurts a lot. This is unfortunately what tends to happen again and again in politics, particularly during legislative elections, with parachuting… Nothing to do with sporting discipline, but an old and purely political tactic. For movements or political parties, it consists of investing a candidate, often a “heavyweight”, in a constituency in which he does not necessarily have any ties. A mess which is often done to the detriment of an elected official or local activist who could legitimately expect to be designated, with his knowledge of the area and its inhabitants.
If parachuting is a well-established technique, it also often leaves voters with a bitter taste, a feeling of injustice, of contempt towards them, sometimes even pitting the province against the capital. And in the end, does not always favor being elected
We still remember one of the fans of parachuting, Jack Lang invested in the 2012 legislative elections in Saint-Dié in the Vosges, the surprising spontaneous candidacies, like that of the singer Francis Lalanne, this time in the 3rd constituency of Guadeloupe itself if he does not have any particular ties to the island… In the previous legislative elections, in 2022, we still remember the Toulouse-born Manuel Bompard who arrived in Marseille with the approval of Jean-Luc Mélenchon, of Jean-Michel Blanquer in the Loiret… The list is long.
From Strasbourg to Arras, from Marseille to Carcassonne
For these legislative elections of June 30 and July 7, Nicolas Matt, Strasbourg municipal councilor of opposition for Renaissance and vice-president of the European Community of Alsace, has paid the price. A real surprise with the parachuting into the 1st constituency of Bas-Rhin of Étienne Loos (Renaissance) with his deputy, Fabienne Keller, the former mayor of the city, member of the party’s national authorities and current MEP. If Étienne Loos, even though he is from Strasbourg, has held various positions as ministerial advisor, notably to Élisabeth Borne, he remains a complete unknown to the city’s voters. Not sure that he will manage to beat the ecologist Sandra Regol, candidate for re-election in a city center of Strasbourg well anchored on the left. This Monday, in a post on his Facebook page, Nicolas Matt denounces “tinkering, compromises” and does not mince his words after being refused the investiture by Paris. “However, I thought I was legitimate,” explains the elected official, recalling “more than a hundred meetings” organized “on the ground with residents, participation in all public meetings and support for associations.”
What do we still think of the parachuting of Agnès Pannier-Runacher in Arras (Pas-de-Calais)? An arrival which did not really appeal to the president of the urban community, Frédéric Leturque. “It’s big bullshit on the part of the Renaissance party,” he reacted in the columns of The voice of the North. Agnès Pannier-Runacher is not known to either Eve or Adam in the constituency. She did not succeed in making a hole in Lens, so she came to look for a nest in Arras. » The elected official chose to publicly support the “without label” candidacy of the mayor of Saint-Laurent-Blangy, Nicolas Desfachelle, and the mayor of Dainville, Françoise Rossignol, also his first and second vice-presidents for the urban community. “We know that citizens need guidance in these difficult times and that they trust the elected officials of their municipality,” he again confided to our colleagues.
A parachute drop, purges
In Sarthe, it is a regional councilor from Ile-de-France who is running for the RN. Namely Marie-Caroline Le Pen, sister of Marien Le Pen, as revealed The Parisian. In this 4th circo, she faces the outgoing LFI deputy Elise Leboucher. In Doubs, it was the political scientist and CNews columnist, Guillaume Bigot, who landed in the 2nd constituency for the RN. Approached to try to be elected deputy, Christophe Soustelle told France 3: “I am not offended, it even makes me happy and we support it. » The outgoing LFI deputy, Florian Chauche, described this candidacy as a “complete parachute drop”. Guillaume Bigot having no ties to the department, and having been born and having spent most of his career in Paris.
Insoumise France also uses parachuting. For some, the big leap was preceded by a “purge” with deputies who were not reinvested. “Lifetime investitures don’t exist,” replied Jean-Luc Mélenchon to the disappointed. Adding: “The same people who are crying did not protest when the electoral commission parachuted them into their constituency in the past against the advice of local activists. » Today in the 1st circo of Ille-et-Vilaine, it is Frédéric Mathieu who withdrew his candidacy denouncing in a post “abject slanderous maneuvers carried out by Mélenchonist circles”. In her place, Marie Mesmeur arrives in Rennes from Finistère. He was said to be close to Louis Boyard.
Another surprising parachute drop took place in Aude. Where Philippe Poutou (NPA) landed in the 1st constituency. The arrival of the Bordeaux municipal councilor makes Aurélien Turchetto bitter. The vice-president of Carcassonne agglo and mayor of Villesèquelande, member of the PRG, volunteered to represent the New Popular Front. Speaking of “humiliation” and wanting to counter this parachute drop, he still decided to present himself.